30 Dec 2018, 16:20
Blocks are Mine
[Please read the Reducio before posting.]
Reducio
This thread has a few special rules for the ultimate challenge.
In dialogue, your character can only say the words "Hm" and "Oof". Nothing else. Make sure your post goes over 400 words, though! This is the ultimate test of show, don't tell. Test your description skills and enjoy the challenge!
[devised by @Serena Towers, @Dinara Lucey and myself on the H.iO Discord.]
thirtieth december 2018
late morning, trophy room
Finley had never been in the Trophy Room before, with all its glimmering metals and eloquent cases. Upon opening its doors, Finley was in awe, unsure of what to focus on. There was so much to admire! The banners that hung and the metallic trophies vied for Finley's attention, and she wasn't sure what she should focus on. What she was aware of, though, is that she was clearly blocking the door. "Oof," she muttered, turning back and realizing her situation.
She stepped forward, hanging over to the left side of the room to investigate first. There were pillars and cups, each on a wonderful pedestal, some carved more than others. Her hand dragged along the side of the pedestal until one of her fingers got hitched on a splinter, which dug into her finger."Oof!" Finley cried, slapping her hand over her mouth upon the second uttering of the cursed word. What was wrong with her?
She shook her head, sitting down against the wall and attempting to pry the small speck of wood out of her finger. "Hm..." Her voice carried as she took her left hand to her right hand, digging in to try to pull out the splinter, but the more she rubbed it, the more it hurt! It was only a matter of seconds that the pointer finger turned red and began to sting.
Instead of wallowing in her own misery, little Finley McGill came up with a terrible challenge for all the other people who appeared in the Trophy Room at this hour. Pulling a piece of paper and a quill and inkwell out of the large pockets of her corduroy pants, she rested on her stomach and scrawled down the words of this supposedly impossible challenge:
Finley giggled to herself upon devising the challenge. Surely any 11-year-old would be gullible enough to enter this room and be trapped in this impossible challenge. Pushing herself to her feet, she poked a hole in the parchment and hung it on the doorknob. Maybe she would meet some new people, and have a formidable opponent in the process!"Once you enter this room, you can only converse in two English words: "Hm" and "Oof"! If you speak any other English word, I'll make you leave!
Signed,
Finley McGill"
She was excited to see who else would enter, so she raced back over to her quill and inkwell, until she accidentally knocked over her inkwell! Finley barely held in a scream, watching the black liquid spread across the room towards the other trophies. "Oof!" She cried, picking up the inkwell with what little ink it had in it. Who would come in to help her?
31 Dec 2018, 02:16
Blocks are Mine
Alex didn't want to admit it, but he was lost. Hopeless lost. You'd think the longer you were at Hogwarts, the more easily you'd be able to find stuff like your classes, your common room, the library, but it really seemed the opposite to him. Maybe the castle was enchanted to be nice to the First Years for the first few weeks but then it was left to its own devices?
He really hoped that his professors would be understanding. In Muggle school, excuses like 'The dog ate my homework' just made you look like a fool even if you had a dog who really enjoyed shredding paper. Was it the same at Hogwarts? Maybe 'I got lost' was the equivalent here and he would get in trouble. Alex really didn't want to be behind in his first year. He was working so hard already!
And honestly? He needed a break. There was just so much work to be done! I mean, it was all learning magic and magical history and such, which he had only ever dreamed of, but it was still a lot of work. The stress of it all- worrying about how good he was compared to his classmates or his brothers or how hard the exams would be- was really getting to him.
Ah, his classroom! Alex sprinted to the door only to see a strange note hung on the doorknob. You could only say two words inside? And barely words at that! Definitely not his class. And who was this Finley McGill issuing the challenge? The name sounded vaguely familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.
Shrugging, Alex pushed open the door. It would be weird, but what the heck. What wasn't weird at Hogwarts!
What Alex didn't expect from the odd challenge was a fellow 1st year Hufflepuff, standing amidst a sea of black ink in the trophy room.
Alex walked toward her, mouth open to offer his help, which he closed immediately. Would she really kick him out if he had asked her if she needed help?
Instead, he tapped her on the shoulder and gestured toward the spill. "Oof," he tried to sound sympathetic, but he was pretty sure it came out more as a question. Oof was the word, right? He searched his pockets for an old handkerchief that he offered Finley to help with the mess.
He really hoped that his professors would be understanding. In Muggle school, excuses like 'The dog ate my homework' just made you look like a fool even if you had a dog who really enjoyed shredding paper. Was it the same at Hogwarts? Maybe 'I got lost' was the equivalent here and he would get in trouble. Alex really didn't want to be behind in his first year. He was working so hard already!
And honestly? He needed a break. There was just so much work to be done! I mean, it was all learning magic and magical history and such, which he had only ever dreamed of, but it was still a lot of work. The stress of it all- worrying about how good he was compared to his classmates or his brothers or how hard the exams would be- was really getting to him.
Ah, his classroom! Alex sprinted to the door only to see a strange note hung on the doorknob. You could only say two words inside? And barely words at that! Definitely not his class. And who was this Finley McGill issuing the challenge? The name sounded vaguely familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.
Shrugging, Alex pushed open the door. It would be weird, but what the heck. What wasn't weird at Hogwarts!
What Alex didn't expect from the odd challenge was a fellow 1st year Hufflepuff, standing amidst a sea of black ink in the trophy room.
Alex walked toward her, mouth open to offer his help, which he closed immediately. Would she really kick him out if he had asked her if she needed help?
Instead, he tapped her on the shoulder and gestured toward the spill. "Oof," he tried to sound sympathetic, but he was pretty sure it came out more as a question. Oof was the word, right? He searched his pockets for an old handkerchief that he offered Finley to help with the mess.
31 Dec 2018, 14:23
Blocks are Mine
Interactions | @Finley McGill , @Alexander Orion
As usual, Dinara was... Bored. While a magical castle may boast several interesting corners for one to explore, the lively lass had already taken the liberty of exploring the various corners (at least the ones she had access to) and knocking on walls in hopes of stumbling upon a secret passage. Though secret passages definitely do exist within the walls of Hogwarts, Dinara simply hadn't the means to access them.
Well, not yet at least.
It was on this particular day that the curious girl decided to traverse into the school's Trophy Room. A weird place for an 11-year-old child to take an interest in, but Dinara figured that exploring an area less-traveled may prove to be more rewarding than simply sticking her nose into the already well-worn paths.
Squinting suspiciously at the words that were hastily scribbled on the poorly-made makeshift sign, she tilted her head in slight disbelief. Dinara has been in her fair share of competitions - from rock-skipping to Exploding Snap - but this could very well be one of, if not the most ridiculous idea that she had ever come across. Then again, a challenge is a challenge, no matter how seemingly meaningless it may appear to be; Dinara Lucey was confident that she would emerge from this challenge victorious and beat out the mysterious competitor. The girl hadn't taken the time to properly glance through the whole message -- as usual, Dinara had only vaguely skimmed through the main bulk of the message, conveniently missing the name that had been signed at the bottom of the parchment.
Striding into the room with all the grace of a Quidditch Seeker who'd just won their team the game, she raised an eyebrow when her eyes were met with the familiar yellow robes of her fellow Hufflepuffs. One of which she vaguely recognised as Finley McGill, a girl that had previously helped her out of a sticky situation in the Hufflepuff Common Room. The other, a young boy that Dinara had never met before with hair that seemed almost as curly as hers.
Pursing her lips and stomping her foot in an attempt to appear intimidating, Dinara adopted a tone of infuriating superiority as she inhaled deeply, preparing to unleash her first 'attack' :'Hm.' Her little demonstration of intimidation had not actually accomplished anything vaguely noteworthy, in fact, it may have actually done the opposite. Dinara's small stature and her overwhelming head of curls contributed to her looking like a mildly agitated lion, though it would be more astute to say that she resembled more of a lion cub than an actual lion. The 'threat' that she had tried to convey through her short exclamation didn't seem to have any effect at all!
The pool of black ink that had been spreading out like a tangle of roots didn't show any sign of slowing. Dinara may not have noticed, but a few more minutes and all the precious trophies that have accumulated throughout the years boasting of Hogwarts' pride and victory would soon be stained with the dark ink; potentially marring the names of brilliant witches and wizards who had once given their best in order to uphold Hogwarts' reputation!
Her hazel eyes narrowed as she stared grimly at her two competitors. Dinara was determined to win, although a more eagle-eyed student would've (by now) recognised the more pressing issue at hand.
[font=segoe script]Dinara Lucey[/font]
Stamina 5 | Evasion 10 | Strength 5 | Wisdom 2 | Arcane Power 10 | Accuracy 8